Mike Vlahovich: Here’s hoping Casto makes most of chance

Monday, a Washington Interscholastic Activities Association representative heard the appeal by an attorney on behalf of DeAngelo Casto in his effort to regain eligibility and play basketball at Ferris. By Tuesday he was no longer the “Greater Spokane League’s tallest manager,” as coach Don Van Lierop put it a while back, but in uniform.

Prior to the decision, people asked me what I thought – should he be allowed to play or not? My feelings were as mixed as those who waxed pro and con about Casto’s situation.

There were those at Ferris in his camp and others who feel it wouldn’t be in the team’s best interest if he returned.

My conclusion prior to the decision was that with only two months remaining in his high school career, what good would be derived from denying a young man the rest of it?

Casto has been a lightning rod enough through all the controversy. In discussions with people in the Saxons community, there’s no question that he did things last year that put him on the hot seat. People felt, you play by the rules and live with your consequences. Regardless, that was an internal issue at Ferris. Read the Internet blog dialogue about him and no teenager needs to be subjected to some of what was said.

In all my dealings with him, I’ve found him to be articulate and thoughtful. You can sense an innate intelligence that simply needed direction. His detractors have categorized him as arrogant and a manipulative rules breaker.

More likely, he’s an amalgamation of the two, a complicated individual whose story would be fascinating to tell – if only you could get to the entire root truth of it.

Certainly his has been an unsettled upbringing, a ward of the state faced with family issues beginning when he played for Freeman and continuing with the move to Seattle and back.

Some can pull themselves out of such circumstances and others get buried by them. Not all are endowed with a 6-foot-8 body and basketball gifts that forces the spotlight on a person not accustomed to, nor comfortable with it.

Certainly some issues are of Casto’s doing, but others are not. He’s already sat out the better part of one season of his high school career as a result. What was to be gained by further penalty?

This is my Christmas wish.

Now that the WIAA has found in his favor, that Casto will profit from it. Maybe this threat to his eligibility and basketball future is an eye-opener.

May his brief experience in Seattle lead to an appreciation of who he is and what he has here and that he makes any necessary personal changes.

With hope, as a result, he realizes he has a basketball gift that can lead to a bright future and doesn’t risk jeopardizing it by making further mistakes or failing in the classroom.

We all deserve a do-over and Casto gets his. Now it’s up to him. We can only hope for him and wish for him the best.